


Bits and Pieces

by BotchedExperiment



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Conversations, Cuddling & Snuggling, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Nightmares, Sensory Overload, Sick Character, post-resurrection
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-14
Updated: 2020-02-09
Packaged: 2020-05-07 12:55:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 7,511
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19209862
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BotchedExperiment/pseuds/BotchedExperiment
Summary: A collection of Critical Role ficlets





	1. Book

**Author's Note:**

> Chapter 1: Book - Caleb has a bad day  
> Chapter 2: Cold - Beau's cold, Caleb's a bro  
> Chapter 3: Future - Molly and Caleb are on watch  
> Chapter 4: Wrong - Caleb has another bad day  
> Chapter 5: Home - Jester is cuddly, feverish, and kinda homesick  
> Chapter 6: Like - Molly is reminded why he doesn't get involved in people's personal business  
> Chapter 7: Tense - Will Caleb ever stop having bad days?  
> Chapter 8: Soup - Molly is cared for by some pink dude  
> Chapter 9: Nightmares - Molly can't sleep, neither can Caleb. They find a solution  
> Chapter 10: Warmth - Jester cares for Caduceus in her own way

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Caleb has a bad day

The day starts with everything going horribly wrong.

The group gets ambushed by some well-equipped bandits and only just manages to fight for their things back. Everyone's bruised and battered as they watch the bandits ride away happily with two-hundred of their hard-earned gold.

In the midst of rushing away from danger later that day, the unspeakable happens.

Caleb loses his balance and lands in a puddle. Not a big deal, he doesn't mind being muddy. But his heart stops at the sight below him when he pulls himself up. Caleb bites back a string of curses as he picks up his muddy, soaked book off the ground. He flips through the pages in a panic.

Ruined.

"Caleb! Hurry up! Before they see us!" Jester presses.

Caleb resists the urge to lament for too long, letting Jester drag him away with the saturated book in his arms.

He doesn’t feel like socializing with everyone after such a terrible day, so Caleb stays outside of the tavern as the group funnels in. He wanders until he finds a tree he can be near while keeping sight of the tavern. He sits, setting the book on his lap, leaning his head back, and closing his eyes.

Caleb exhales. He could fall asleep right now if he wanted to. He's ready to be finished with today.

"You look fucked, my friend."

Caleb hums and doesn’t bother to open his eyes. He knows who that voice belongs to. " _Please_ leave me alone, Mollymauk."

"Hm, I don’t think so. It's not very safe out here alone. I actually came to retrieve you, but…" he gestures vaguely toward Caleb, and Caleb knows exactly what he's saying. He must look awful.

It's been a long day. A long day full of crowds and fighting and wet books and disappointment. Everyone else has been just as grumpy as he is and he needed a break from it all.

He wanted to be alone, so of course Mollymauk had to follow him out here. "Go away."

"Nope! You don’t have to talk to me, but I'm not leaving. Nott will have my head if I let anything happen to you."

Caleb growls under his breath.

"Also, I brought you ale."

The wizard's eyes finally open. He snatches the mug, breathing out in relief and taking an eager sip. He nods. "You can stay."

Molly makes a happy noise before leaning against the tree and drinking from his own.

A few seconds of silence go by and Caleb's focus goes back to the damp book in his lap. Maybe some of it can be salvaged, or he can buy some paper and copy the legible pages onto it. He doesn’t realize how long he's been staring off until-

"You're doing it again." A hand on his shoulder, and Caleb thinks about shrugging it off. He doesn’t.

"What am I doing again?" Caleb breathes out without being particularly curious of the answer.

Molly shrugs. "You do this _thing_ sometimes," he says. "You stare off into space and completely check out. I've noticed it when you're tired."

Caleb prides himself on his keen mind, and he likes to pretend that he doesn’t have a problem focusing no matter how exhausted he is. But Mollymauk is right, if he's being honest.

"Is it alright?"

Caleb blinks up at the tiefling. He missed something.

"Your book, is it alright?" Molly asks before taking another sip. He doesn’t look like he actually cares, but it's always been hard to tell whether Mollymauk is being sincere or not.

Caleb groans and he hopes that's enough to answer Molly's question. "It's my fault. I should have been more careful." He scowls at it as if that'll fix anything, and then gives up and drinks some more ale. More silence goes by.

"Well!" Molly sighs and plops down on the grass without any grace. "Today was awful."

"Today was absolute shit," Caleb agrees.


	2. Cold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beau's cold, Caleb's a bro.

They end up on watch together on a cold night. The ground is gradually dusted white with snow, and it would be beautiful if they weren't freezing. Both of them are wrapped in blankets, but Beau's seems to do much less than Caleb's.

"Caleb," Beau breaks a silence, teeth chattering and voice shaking.

"Mm?"

"Would it be like, super inappropriate if I asked for your body heat? I'm freezing." She can hear him shivering as well under the blanket he's bundled in, and she briefly wonders why the hell they didn’t buy proper winter clothes.

Caleb is silent for a moment, considering the question. Suddenly and without a word, he scoots next to her and presses his body against hers. The two of them grunt as they struggle to get comfortable, both sore from their last run-in with enemies, but they eventually find a comfortable position while sharing Caleb's blanket.

"Thanks, man."

"Not a problem," Caleb mutters.

They watch the sun rise and draw away from each other as it begins to melt the snow and warm them up a bit. The others start to wake, making various noises of unhappiness at being awake and cold. Beau clears her throat.

"Long day of travel ahead of us," Fjord announces, because of course he's the first of them to get up. "Let's get ready to head out."

Everyone groans but complies, and soon they're on their way.

Beau is still shivering, despite the sun out and the trees dripping with melted snow. It looks like a dramatic change in temperature from the morning, but it feels just as cold. She even borrows (steals) Caleb's blanket and tries to get warm, and she doesn’t bother to stop and wonder why he isn't fighting her for it.

It doesn’t help.

"Why is it so _fucking_ cold?" Beau mumbles through gritted teeth.

Jester and Caleb exchange looks before turning to her with raised eyebrows.

"You're still cold?"

"It got a lot warmer, Beau," Jester states matter-of-factly. "You can't be that cold."

But she is. Beau just grunts and closes her eyes, willing away the headache caused by the motion of their cart.

She doesn’t realize she's fallen asleep until Caleb is nudging her awake.

"Beauregard, we've found a town to settle in for the evening."

She blinks and hops off the cart, lacking her usual agility. Everyone's already walking far ahead of them. How long was Caleb trying to wake her?

"You still look cold," Caleb says it casually enough, but Beau can't help but take it as an accusation.

"Fuck you I'm fine."

Caleb doesn’t respond and Beau tries not to feel guilty. Sniping at each other is their thing, right? But she's already busy trying to ignore the pounding in her head and the way her muscles cry with every movement. Her skin is extra sensitive to the cold air, and she's pretty sure her nose is running but she can't feel it or be bothered to do something about it.

So, she didn’t have the energy to ignore any guilt, "S-sorry."

Caleb looks at her as if she's grown a second head. "What?"

Oh, right. She's not usually an apologizer, is she? Not about little things like that.

She rolls her eyes and shoves past him into the tavern. It's not any warmer inside, even when there's crackling flames in the fireplace on the far wall. Some of the others have started removing their coats, and she's still got her arms folded in an attempt to preserve her body heat.

She feels wrong.

They're in the middle of the tavern discussing what to do next, who to talk to about what. She hasn’t bothered to pay attention. They can make decisions without her today.

"What's up with you?" Fjord asks.

"What do you mean, 'up with me'?"

"You're quiet."

Beau is about to throw something particularly unkind at him when Caleb chimes into the conversation.

"She's getting sick," and again, he says it without any concern, without looking up from his drink.

Beau takes in his words and how she's been feeling, and realizes that he might be right. It's been a while since she's caught anything. She hadn't considered it a possibility.

"I'm fine," she says when she sees Fjord start to scrutinize her. "I'm _fine._ "

"I heard you the first time." He clears his throat and position's his body to face her in the way he often does when he's about to Talk to someone. "Hey look, if you need to stay back here and get some rest while we do stuff-"

"Nope. I'm good."

Fjord looks like he wants to argue, but he decides against it, going back to the group's conversation to discourage the terrible scheme Jester and Nott are cooking up.

The group forms some plans for the rest of their day over drinks and starts to split up. Beau stumbles as she stands from the table and thankfully, no one seems to notice. She follows the rest out, and stops at the weak grasp on his arm.

She and Caleb make eye contact, and Beau realizes how rare it is for the two of them. Caleb's grip on her arm disappears as he returns his hand to his side.

"You," He says lowly. "Are not fine."

Beau clears her throat. There's no hiding it now, not from the guy who knew she was sick before she did. "Yeah... So?"

"So? So I think you should stay here and let everyone… do their thing without you." He averts his gaze once again, having said what he wanted and having no idea where to go from there.

She sighs.

Assessing exactly how awful she feels, Beau starts to think that staying behind and not doing anything could be really nice, but it could also be really fucking boring. Would she rather be useful and miserable or rested and lonely? Caleb awkwardly shifts his stance, sparing a glance at her.

"Why don’t you and I stay behind?"

"What?" Beau asks with raised brows.

"If that makes you more inclined to take a rest. We are a group, you know. We need you at a hundred-percent as quickly as possible in case something were to happen."

She thinks. "I… yeah, I guess that'd be cool. If you want."

He looks in the direction the others have walked, and she follows his gaze, finding that they've made it a ways down the road. He doesn’t say anything else before he casts a message to Nott, letting her know that they were going to hold down the fort.

A weight Beau didn’t realize she was carrying is lifted off of her. It's been a long time since she's been sick, and even longer since she hasn’t had to hide it.


	3. Future

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Molly and Caleb are on watch together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this series is just for me to write whatever comes to mind tbh

It isn't often that they go on watch together. Caleb usually prefers to be with Nott, and Molly with Yasha. Tonight they end up together, and Molly can't help but be excited. He doesn’t often get to be alone with the strange wizard.

They don’t say much at first. Neither of them are small-talk people.

There's silence until, "Mister Mollymauk."

Molly grins at the formal name. "Yes, Mister Caleb?"

"Have you thought about what you will do after this is all over?"

Ah. So it's going to be that kind of late night.

"And by 'this' I assume that you mean our little adventures?"

"Mm. We can't do this forever." Caleb's right. Some of them have their own goals, some of them are kind of just trying to do good where they can. All of them, however, enjoy having some extra gold.

Molly clears his throat. "Well, I imagine that wherever I end up, I'll find a way to enjoy myself."

Caleb hums. "Are you going to go with Yasha?"

"That depends on where she's going, I suppose." Molly shrugs. "That's not something we need to worry about right now. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it, and so will you."


	4. Wrong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Caleb has another bad day

It's one of those days.

One of those days when everything feels wrong. Every sound, everything that touches his skin causes a wave of irrational irritation, anger to rise in his gut. Nott is the only person he doesn't mind touch from on days like these, but even then, she's known to keep her distance today.

The motion of the boat does nothing but agitate him further.

Caleb tries to focus on the books in front of him, trying to take the long travel as an opportunity to study them.

It's impossible.

Focusing is impossible. Sitting still is impossible.

He gives a loud, irritable sigh, slamming a book closed without care and immediately regretting it and checking it for damage. He needs-

Well, Caleb's not sure what he needs, but he definitely needs _something_. He can't spend the whole day in this state, he refuses. He needs a break, or food, or some of Caduceus' strange tea, possibly all three of those things.

Setting his books aside in a neat stack, he stands from the hard wooden floor and gives a good stretch. It's early afternoon, Caleb realizes, and he's been holed up since he woke feeling wrong that morning. It would probably do him some good to eat even though he doesn’t feel particularly hungry.

"Look who it is!" Fjord greets. "How're you doing? Nott said you weren't feeling great."

He looks to Nott, who's sitting at the table with Fjord and Caduceus, offering a minute smile in appreciation. She nods in return.

The three of them have mostly-empty plates in front of them, and there's a small stack of dirty dishes in the kitchen. He must have just missed lunch. Probably for the best.

Caleb clears his throat. "Fine, fine. I was just looking for tea, if you wouldn’t mind, Mr. Clay."

"No, not a problem at all." The legs of the chair make a horrible scraping sound as he stands up. Caleb winces.

He stands there feeling useless as Caduceus fills the kettle and sets it on the stove.

Looking over, he finds that Nott hasn’t taken her eyes off of him. He furrows his brows in question, and she shrugs in return.

"You look better. Are you feeling less…" she glances at Fjord and Caduceus. "Sick?"

Fjord looks up expectantly while Caduceus stays focused on making tea.

"I…"

He doesn’t feel less _anything_ than he had when he spoke to Nott that morning. He remembers telling her that he wasn’t feeling up to much, he remembers sitting down with his books, and suddenly it was afternoon and now he's here wishing that the tea would be ready quicker. Caleb clears his throat.

"…I think that this is something that can only be solved with time." at least he likes to think that is the case. He's never figured out what exactly makes these bad days go away, sometimes it just happens. "And… hopefully tea."

Nott nods, a frown deepening. "Ah. I see."

"Well, let us know if there's anything we can do to help you feel better," Fjord says before stacking his dishes and standing. The chair legs scrape against the floor once again, and Caleb closes his fist until his nails are digging into his skin and breathes deeply until the irritation dies down.

Too much. This was a mistake. He should have stayed in the room, away from everyone, away from everything unpredictable and out of his control. He can't help but feel ridiculous being upset by something as simple as a noise, but at the same time he can't stop himself.

"Tha- thank you," he grinds out.

A cup of tea is pressed in his hands. He takes a moment to focus on the warmth, the smell, the steam rising to moisten his face. The one nice thing he's come in contact with all day. And then he sips it, and some things are a little less horrible.

Caduceus makes a thoughtful noise in the back of his throat. "You look like you've been needing some tea for a while."

A nod. "I think I have."

Fjord leaves to resume his duties as captain, leaving the three of them in the kitchen.  Caleb keeps his eyes on the cup in his grip. Everything definitely feels better. Now that he's ventured out and gotten what he wanted, he doesn’t feel as much of a need to return to the room.

Caduceus drinks from his own cup. Nott hops off of her seat, taking care to not move it nearly as much as their larger friends had. She pushes her plate onto the stack and walks over to him, looking up.

"Are you okay now?"

Caleb still feels fidgety and uptight, a cup of tea isn't going to completely change that. But he feels better.

"I'll… be okay," he says, voice hesitant.

"If you're feeling rough, I could try a healing spell," Caduceus offers.

"I'm afraid it's not that sort of a problem, Mr. Clay."

Caduceus glances up from his teacup and gives Caleb a quick once-over. "Ah, I think I understand. In that case, I'm always willing to make tea whenever you need it."

Nott smiles. Caleb can see the relief in her eyes she's reminded she's not the only one who can watch out for him.

"I appreciate that," another sip.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tea is code for friends


	5. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jester is cuddly, feverish, and kinda homesick.

"Look, _someone_ should stay with Jester to keep an eye on her," Fjord says in a hushed tone. It's not hushed enough.

"Nooo, I'm okay you guys. I can come too," Jester argues.

Nott and Beau rush over to stop her from getting out of bed, but in the end she's too dizzy and weak to manage anyway. She whines, but leans back onto Beau, resting her head on her thigh for the time being. Everyone has quickly learned that Jester is a clingy sick person… and it's adorable.

Fjord sighs. "You can hardly move, Jess. Someone's gotta make sure you don’t pass out in the middle of the tavern or something."

"Well, I mean, if _you_ wanted to stay and hang out for a little while…"

Fjord chuckles and shakes his head. "Sorry. I've got things to do in the city," earning a pout from the ill tiefling.

" _I'll_ stay."

The four of them look to the doorway where Molly is standing. He politely nudges his way into the room where everyone has congregated. "I don’t really have anything to do in town."

"Are you sure? What about the potions you wanted to look at?"

He shrugs. "You can look for something as simple as that for me, can't you?"

Fjord stares at Molly, thinking, and then looks to Jester. "You okay with that, Jester?"

She releases Beau from under her and cuddles a pillow instead. "I _guess_ if I can't go with you guys then it would be pretty fun to have Molly here."

So it's decided.

She makes a happy noise when Nott presses a kiss to her cheek, Beau waves goodbye, both of them offering well-wishes as they leave. Soon, everyone but Jester and Molly are left in the room. Molly perches himself on the edge of the bed.

"So," he smiles. "Need anything?"

Jester takes some time to think about it.

"You should definitely cuddle me."

"Oh, should I now?" But he's already pulling off his shoes and climbing in the other side of the bed. Jester attaches herself to him before he even has a chance to get settled. He can feel her shivering slightly now that they're so close, even though her skin is far too hot.

She hums happily. "Beau never wants to cuddle. I mean, she did last night because I was sick and I think she wanted to make me feel better, but she usually only does it when it's super cold at night."

Molly nods. "Yeah, I don't see Beau as much of a cuddler."

Jester shifts, nudging her head under Molly's chin and resting on his chest. She shudders, so he manages to pull the blanket over the two of them, up to Jester's shoulders. He hadn't expected to be so comfortable in bed in the middle of the day, but Jester's warm weigh next to him is already making him sleepy.

"When I was little, my mom would sometimes sleep in my bed when I was sick." A giggle. "I don't think she got much rest, though. I'd just kick her all night in my sleep."

Molly chuckles. "Your mom must have been a special woman to put up with you."

"Hey! Fuck you, Molly," Jester says, but they both know she doesn't mean it. She makes an attempt to snuggle him closer, gives up, shivers. "She would sing me songs, and hold me until I fell asleep."

Molly hears a sniffle.

"I miss her."

"Hey, none of that, alright?" He manages to give a kiss to her temple. "I'm sure you'll see her soon."

Jester makes an acknowledging noise and sniffs again. "I hope so, Molly."

He's never seen her so defeated. It's sort of heartbreaking. Molly nudges the top of her head with his cheek, minding the curled horns that Jester seems to have made sure don't poke him uncomfortably. (One has a lot of practice avoiding hurting cuddle-mates when one has horns.)

"This is your first time being ill since you left home." It's not a question, it's not hard for him to tell.

A pause. "Yeahhh. It's stupid, but I really miss home right now."

"Just remember that you have us. We might not be as great as your mother, but I like to think we're pretty fantastic people to keep around."

He can feel her huff out a chuckle through her nose. She's getting tired, lacking her usual energy and enthusiasm. "I _really_ love you guys."

Molly hums. "We really love you too."

They lie in a comfortable silence for a while, but it's not long before both of them are asleep.

The rest of the group comes across two sleeping tieflings hours later, and decides not to disturb them.

 


	6. Like

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Molly is reminded why he doesn't get involved in people's personal business

It's late. Everyone's gone to bed save for Molly and Jester. Her cup of milk has been empty for some time now, but she's stayed at the table. He's just starting to think about going to bed when,

"Molly…"

"Hm?"

"Does Fjord _like_ me?"

Molly raises an eyebrow as he lowers his drink. "How the fuck would I know that?"

She groans and throws her head in her arms. "I don’t know!" came the muffled voice. She turns her head, one eye peeking out. "You're like his roommate right? So does he ever talk about me at night? Don’t you guys have super deep sleepover conversations like me and Beau?

Molly smiles, amused. "Alright, what brought this on?" drink abandoned on the table as he leans forward with interest.

"Okay, so… yesterday Fjord told me that I looked good."

"And?"

"That's it!"

Molly blinks. "Jester…"

"No, no no! Seriously, it had to mean something! Do you think he likes me?"

He takes a little while to respond. He doesn’t want to give her false hope, as cute as it is that she has such a thing for Fjord.

"You… you really shouldn’t go reading into things that deeply. It'll just result in hurt feelings." Her usual hopeful look fades into disappointment and he immediately feels like the worst person in the world. "But! But that doesn’t mean-"

"No, it's okay, Molly. I understand."

He downs the rest of his drink as she walks away. Fuck.

\-----

Mollymauk does his best to tamp down the guilt of upsetting Jester. He convinces himself he did nothing but tell the truth in the best possible way as he tiptoes past Fjord's bed to his own.

"Hey Molly."

And nearly jumps out of his skin. " _Gods,_ I thought you were asleep!"

"Naw, I've just been laying here."

"Strange, but alright," he decides before getting into his own bed. He's ready to sleep after their busy day and a good drink.

"Can I ask you a question?"

Molly chuckles halfheartedly. "That seems to be a bad idea for everyone today."

"What…? Never mind, I was just wondering if Jester's said anything…" he clears his throat. "… about me."

Molly's eyes widen. He likes to think he expects the unexpected. He did not expect _this_ unexpected. Now he feels guilty for a whole new set of reasons. Jester's more perceptive than he gives her credit for.

"I told her she looked good yesterday and she acted really weird after that. I'm kind of afraid I offended her or something."

A loud, dramatic groan is Mollymauk's first response. This is why he doesn’t like to get involved in these things (unless it's purely for fun, of course).

"Why don’t you _talk_ to her."

"Yeah, but-"

"For fuck's sake, just talk to Jester!" he turns over and goes to sleep.


	7. Tense

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will Caleb ever stop having bad days?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> idk what this is about

It's never easy to watch when Caleb goes out of commission after a fight. Molly isn't sure what it is about fire that causes such a reaction, but whatever it is has to be taken seriously or they're all in trouble. So, Mollymauk takes the responsibility of guiding the wizard away from the charred, smoking corpse of their most recent enemy. He wonders if Caleb's even aware of who's taken his hand.

Molly speaks absently on their walk back to town, telling ridiculous stories of the circus with no expectation for Caleb to respond. He isn't even sure he's listening, but that's alright. Talking is as much to keep Molly's own post-battle nerves at bay as it is to help Caleb stay somewhat grounded.

"Yasha and I weren't really performers, but they needed us to improvise on stage occasio-" he lets out a soft gasp as Caleb's hand squeezes his own.

He's still watching the ground, keeping track of his own footsteps, but Molly hopes that Caleb somehow sees the smile he offers.

Caleb starts to become more aware of his surroundings as they get closer to town. He. Soon, his hand slips out of Mollymauk's and ends up in a pocket of his dirty coat.

Nott is at his side, talking to him in a hushed tone and Molly watches Caleb give a nod. Apparently satisfied by the answer, Nott doesn't say anything else, but she's the one to take his hand this time.

It's the moment they congregate in one of their rooms at the inn that everyone starts asking things of him.

Fjord holds out a dagger they'd gotten off of one of the now-charred corpses and asks Caleb to identify it, and Beau is asking what he would know about the magic they'd come across. His body language tenses, and so does Nott as she watches him.

He sighs before giving an annoyed, "Yes, but I need ten minutes, and I do not know what happened."

The dagger isn't magical. Everyone seems to know to leave him be after the identify spell is done.

They meet in the tavern for dinner. It's a good chance to get out of their armor and pretend that they're not unbelievably sore from the events of the day. It doesn't take Molly long to notice something's missing, though.

Caleb.

Nott's noticed as well, eyes darting around looking for her friend.

"I'll get him," Molly whispers. He gets up and heads to the room before she has a chance to protest. He might as well see what Caleb's up to, and possibly save Nott some worry.

"You must be hungry," Molly says as he waltzes into the room. Caleb startles at first, and then relaxes once his eyes set on Molly.

"Always, but I don't feel much like eating right now." He's seated in the one chair in the room with a book Molly wonders he's actually paying attention to. He looks uncomfortable and tense like he's not particularly enjoying his "reading".

"Fair enough. I just came to make sure that you were up here."

Caleb nods. "And I am, so there you go."

Molly takes that as his cue to leave, except when he starts-

"Mollymauk," Molly stops in his tracks and turns back to the wizard. Caleb's eyes remain trained on the open book in his lap, like he can't muster the will or effort to look up.

"Mm?"

"Would you mind staying? I don't... I don't really want to be alone right now." His voice dies at the end, and Molly's heart tightens. He wonders how long Caleb's been up here waiting for someone to return.

As much as he wants to be the one there for Caleb, he fears he won't be as good at it as the man's best friend will be.

"How about I retrieve Nott? I think she's worried about you."

Caleb seems to think about it for a moment, and then nods more noticeably than he has all day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> also hey if anyone has requests/ideas for little less-than-1000 h/c ficlets you're dying to see, go ahead and message me or send an ask on tumblr @ botchedexperiment.tumblr.com  
> i'm not /officially/ doing requests on there but i'm having fun with these and i'd love to do more???  
> or if u just wanna scream together abt these characters and how much they need love, that's alright too


	8. Soup

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Molly is cared for by some pink dude

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> its canon in my heart

Molly wakes to the sound of a crackling fireplace.

His mouth is dry and his body feels stiff as a board. Molly shifts, wincing as his muscles crying out in pain.

Finally, he opens his eyes.

A tall creature with flowy clothes and pink hair has their back turned to him, seeming to be stirring something in a pot over the fire. They hum to themselves with a low, bass-y voice that's almost calming despite everything confusing going on.

The last thing Mollymauk remembers is the Mighty Nein planning their attack against Lorenzo. He tries not to worry too much about it. He hopes the others survived, but would he be here if they had?

He makes a questioning noise, clearing his throat in the process. As Molly becomes more awake and aware, he can taste something distinctly earthy and sandy sticking to areas of his mouth. Dirt. Gross.

The figure's ears perk up before they turn around and stand to their full height. Molly isn't sure he's ever seen someone so tall.

"You're awake, that's great! Everyone is going to be so excited."

"Where-" Molly has so many questions to ask, and yet the dryness in his throat causes his voice to die before he can get a sentence out. "Water?" He rasps.

"Yes, of course."

A cup is pressed into his hand, and he drinks greedily until it's empty. He nudges the pink person with the cup as a silent beg for more, and they comply. Molly takes steadier sips of the second cup, working to swallow away the grime in his mouth.

"My name's Caduceus. It's really nice to finally meet you, I've heard so much."

A heavy weight causes the mattress Molly's on to dip as they sit on the edge by his legs. This person - Caduceus - is watching him with the kindest eyes Molly thinks he's ever seen. He somehow feels safe being vulnerable in front of a stranger, in a strange place.

"I'm… Mollymauk." Oh wow, he sounds awful. Still, at least his voice is actually working. "But it sounds like you already know that." He clears his throat. There's a question weighing on him, and he's not one to speak timidly. "Am I the only one left?"

"The only one…?" Caduceus blinks.

"The Mighty Nein, are they dead?" He has to know no matter how unprepared for the answer he is. The idea of losing a second family terrifies him. But he has to know.

"No! oh, no no, they're alright. I'm sorry, I should have taken into account how busy your mind would be when you woke."

"All of them?"

"All of them," Caduceus assures with a warm smile. "Yasha, Fjord, and Jester too. They're all out replenishing our supplies at the moment, or I'd get them in here right away. They'll be a little upset that you woke up while they were gone," he chuckles.

Yasha, Fjord, and Jester. Hearing their names both comforts him and unsettles him as they come from this stranger. How does he know three of his closest friends? But knowing they’re alive and well is enough to keep him from darting out of the room to rescue them.

"What happened?"

Caduceus' smile fades. He hesitates for a moment. "I… I'd better let the others explain. I don’t think it's my place, or my story to tell. Just know that you're safe here, and they'll be back soon. Why don’t you get some more rest while we wait?"

Molly doesn’t want to go back to sleep, he doesn’t even want to try. The idea of it is off-putting, and he feels like he's been sleeping for ages anyway. He wants answers, and he'll wait as long as he needs to get them.

Caduceus seems to understand. "Or… I have some soup about ready if you feel up to eating."

Molly nods slowly. He isn't sure what he feels like at the moment, certainly not hungry, but he might as well try to eat while he waits.

He accepts a warm bowl and holds it in his hands. It's nice to feel something warm.

And then he takes a bite. He doesn’t take time to identify the hint of strange spices before taking another bite, and another, until a soft hand lands on his arm. Molly looks up, almost annoyed at Caduceus for interrupting his meal.

"Maybe you should slow down, go a little easy on your stomach?" he said. "You've already had a lot to drink, I'd hate for you to throw up and lose everything."

Molly doesn’t like the idea one bit because he's _starving,_ but he listens anyway, because Caduceus just doesn’t seem like someone he wants to disappoint (or inconvenience with his vomit). His stomach fills up a lot faster than he expects, and he sets the bowl aside with half the soup still remaining.

It isn't long before they hear a torrent of voices and footsteps enter whatever building they're in. He recognizes every single one. They get closer until the bedroom door opens.

Molly's met with tears and hugs the moment everyone sees him.


	9. Nightmares

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Molly can't sleep, neither can Caleb. They find a solution.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm ready for Molly's backstory to be released, because I don't believe everything he's told us is the truth  
> and yet, it makes such good fic so...
> 
> AU where Molly is living in the xhorhouse with everyone??? sure

He wakes up coughing.

Molly grasps at his chest until the fabric of his shirt is balled up in his fist.

Inhale, exhale. No sign of earth obscuring his airways. He finds the room pitch black when he opens his eyes, and Mollymauk is ready to panic all over again before he sees the strip of light underneath the door that drags him back into reality.

 _It was just a dream_ , he tells himself. _Just a dream._

He takes another shaky breath in and tries to get a hold of himself. Just a dream. Just a dream.

Everything's fine, and better yet, the light means someone's awake. He's not going back to sleep for a while, why not bug them until he's sleepy again?

He greets the figure hunched over a desk without a second guess of who it could be. "Caleb, what are you doing awake?"

Caleb startles. "Ah! Oh... Molly…" he pulls a piece of his hair behind his ear. "I could ask you the same thing. I just wanted to get some more reading done."

Mollymauk hums before propping himself against the desk, and Caleb does his best to move parchment and books out of the way before Molly can sit on them. "Couldn't sleep," he says simply.

"Mm. That's never fun."

Molly sighs. "No, it really isn't. Hey, Caleb..."

"Mhm?" He's still reading. There's no way to tell if he's actually paying attention, but that's alright.

"Do you ever have nightmares?"

It prompts a humorless giggle from the Wizard. "Ja, heh... sometimes."

Maybe a dumb question. No one freezes up in the middle of a battle like Caleb does without having gone through some sort of nightmare-inducing trauma. "How do you get rid of them?"

Caleb's hand freezes in the middle of turning a page. He clears his throat, scratches his chin, and sighs. "Stop sleeping, I guess."

"Ah," Molly chuckles. "Is that what you're doing?"

"What? Oh, no no... I had reading to do."

"Mm, during a whole week of downtime, you needed to get your reading done in the middle of the night," he says playfully. Caleb tenses. "Oh, I'm just teasing you, Caleb. You can do whatever you..." Molly trails off. He's... He was trying to be sincere, and he has to remind himself that Caleb's sense of humor is a little different than his own. "So, is that all? Just 'stop sleeping'?" He asks, waving a jewelry-ridden hand in a vague mocking gesture.

Caleb thinks for a moment. "Well... my bad dreams lessened when-" he clears his throat, looks down at the book in his hands. "-when I started traveling with Nott. Having someone to share a room with, someone whose presence reminds you that your dreams aren't reality. It's nice."

Now that he thinks about it, Mollymauk's dreams only got so bad once they moved into their new home. The new home where no one needed to share their space unless they really wanted to.

"And you two don’t share a room anymore."

"No, ah… no, we don’t. I think it's as good of a time as any to learn how to sleep without someone there."

"By not sleeping."

"… Ja."

"Oh, Caleb," Molly murmurs sadly. He crosses his arms, watching the wizard continue his reading as if he isn't even there.

The two of them are truly a mess.

_Wait._

"You know, I think there's an easy solution for this. If you're up for it, of course."

Caleb looks up, eyebrow raised.

"Want to sleep in my room tonight?"

Blue eyes widen to twice their size. "Wha- no! Mollymauk, I'm not going to-!"

"Just-!" Molly cuts him off, holding his hands up and trying not to laugh, because _wow_ he could have spoken more carefully. "Just sleep, Caleb. Literal sleep. I'm not coming on to you, honest to the gods."

"Oh," Caleb visibly relaxes. Unless it's Molly's imagination, he looks like he's considering it. "I…"

"It'd be a fun little experiment, see if it gets us anywhere. Honestly, I could use a good night's sleep, and I'm sure you could as well."

It's quiet for an uncomfortably long time before Caleb gives a nod. "Ja… ja, an experiment. Let's try it."

It's the beginning of their routine.

Sleeping in the same bed becomes a regular thing, and at some point no one bats an eye when Caleb and Mollymauk come out of the same room every morning, both looking more rested than they have in weeks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> anyway i enjoy how comfortable molly is with others and doing "romantic" things platonically, good day friends
> 
> feel free to scream at me abt characters @botchedexperiment on tumblr


	10. Warmth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jester cares for Caduceus in her own way

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> another sickfic????  
> yes

It starts when Jester hears a harsh cough from downstairs in the middle of the night. 

She has yet to actually fall asleep, instead keeping awake by drawing under the light of a single candle while Beau snores on the other side of the room.

She goes to investigate and finds their firbolg friend sitting at the kitchen table, miserable and feverish.

“Caduceus, why are you out here so late if you’re sick?” Jester says with a frown, brushing some hair out of his face as he recovers from another coughing fit.

Caduceus gives an acknowledging hum. “I was just hoping some tea would-” his voice cracks, and he stops to clear his throat before continuing. “-chase the cough away. It was keeping me up.”

He sounds so hoarse it’s almost painful to listen to him. Jester tells him exactly that, and he nods.

“Throat’s a little sore.”

Jester frowns. Out of all of the people in their group who probably deserve to get sick, Caduceus was at the bottom of the list. It’s not very fair.

“You should be in bed,” she informs.

Caduceus nods. “I got down here, and then I uh... realized that I probably wouldn’t be able to make it back up the stairs.”

“Well, I can fix  _ that,”  _ Jester says proudly. “Give me a second, okay? Wait here, don’t go anywhere!”

Caduceus raises an eyebrow and doesn’t say a thing. He doesn’t look like he’s planning on getting up, though, so Jester seeks help from the one person who sleeps on the main floor.

\-----

Jester jogs back into the kitchen with a smile. “Come on, I found you a bed!” 

The cogs in Caduceus’ fever-fogged brain don’t turn fast enough for him to understand what’s happening. “I- Where are we...?” 

“Do you need help getting up? You look a little dizzy.”

Caduceus shakes his head and stands up. Or- he tries to. He immediately loses his balance, only kept on his feet when Jester steadies him with a strong grip on his arm.

“There’s not a bed on this floor...” Caduceus says, even as he lets Jester lead him out of the kitchen.

“I mean, you’re wrong about that.”

Caduceus blinks, brows furrowed in confusion. “Am I...?”

It takes a little longer than anticipated, but they finally reach Caleb’s room. He’s already straightened out the blankets and--Jester notices--tidied up.

Jester sits Caduceus on the edge of the bed while he blinks blearily at his surroundings.

Caleb spares a glance at him. “You don’t look fit for sleeping on the roof right now, Mister Clay.”

“Mm. I don’t really feel it, either. Are you sure...?”

“Yes, he’s sure!” Jester says quickly. “Get comfy!”

Caduceus looks between the two of them before slowly getting under the blankets. He’s almost completely covered himself up before he has to rush to cover another cough. It sounds more painful, and Jester tries not to let the subtle rattling sound from her friend’s chest worry her too much.

Finally, Caduceus breathes out a contented sigh. “Thank you, both of you. I didn’t mean to put you out...”

Caleb shakes his head. “Not put out at all. Very happy to help.”

\-----

They suppose if one of them was going to get sick, now is the perfect time. No big responsibilities, no world-ending consequences if they stay at the house and relax.

Which is why everyone’s so content to do nothing when they learn that Caduceus has come down with something.

It’s a sort of flu, Essek informs them, that’s been going around the city.  _ (“Nothing concerning, but he’ll be bedridden for a few days.”) _

Of course it’s Caduceus who gets sick; he hasn’t exactly had a chance to build up a good immune system since he left home. A number of the rest of them would be complaining about it, but Caduceus hasn’t said a thing outside of casually acknowledging his symptoms.

After a night of being able to hear his breathless coughing fits from her own bedroom upstairs, Jester decides to spend the rest of the day keeping him company.

Caduceus accepts it so readily that it makes her wonder if she should have just stayed with him through the night. But she didn’t want to cross boundaries like she knew she was prone to do. She’s trying to  _ better  _ herself as a person, after all, so bullying him into bed was probably enough.

"I can't believe you're taking advantage of Cad's  _ ill state  _ to keep warm," Fjord chuckles as he delivers two bowls of something that smells delicious.

"I can't believe you  _ aren't,"  _ Jester snuggles closer to Caduceus, who gives a happy, sleepy hum and leans against her. She can still feel subtle shivers from her friend despite how many blankets he has. "He's nice and warm, Fjord."

Caduceus’ eyes follow the bowl that’s handed to him with a raised eyebrow. “Did you cook?”

“No,” Fjord laughs too quickly and clears his throat. “Uh, no. It was Beau. Turns out she’s secretly like, a master chef.”

Jester gasps. “Really?!”

“Naw, Essek dropped off a pot. It’s vegetable stew. Says it’s good for whatever you have, Deuces.”

Caduceus smiles.  “That’s nice of him, isn’t it?”

“It really is,” Fjord agrees. “You know, I think he might not hate us? But I guess you two will be the first to know if it’s poisoned.”

Jester rolls her eyes. “You’re terrible, Fjord.”

Fjord snorts. “Kidding! I tried it, and it’s... way too good, honestly. Eat up, Caduceus. You need to keep up your strength.”

Caduceus is already in the process of tasting the stew. His eyes light up a bit before he swallows, and Jester decides that if Caduceus likes it, then she’ll have to eat it as well.

“Thanks,” he finally says after he finishes the bite. “I... I’ll try to get better quickly. I’m sure Mister Caleb wants his bed back.”

“Between you and me,” Fjord takes a few steps closer. “I think Caleb could sleep on a bed of nails without a second thought. So, you’re good.”

Caduceus looks concerned for a moment, and Jester feels the need to chime in. “But he’s definitely  _ not  _ sleeping on a bed of nails.” She pulls her legs under her and sits cross legged before taking her first spoonful of soup. “Caleb’s sleeping in Fjord’s room.”

“Ah,” Caduceus says. “Well, I wouldn’t mind if he wants to stay in here. I... Oh, I might keep him up, though.”

Jester and Fjord exchange looks. “Caduceus,” she says. “Do you want us to stay with you tonight?”

“Hm? Naw, you don’t have to.”

Fjord nods. “We’ll figure it out. In the meantime, feel better, okay Cad?”

“Already am.”

 


End file.
